


Follow Your Heart (But Take Your Brain With You)

by brokenhighways



Category: Supernatural RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Journalism, Angst and Humor, Bad Advice, Crack Treated Seriously, Fluff and Angst, Journalism, Journalist Jared, M/M, Newspapers, Relationship Advice, Sexual Content, Sports, Workplace Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-13
Updated: 2015-12-13
Packaged: 2018-05-06 10:51:42
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,677
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5414099
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brokenhighways/pseuds/brokenhighways
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jared doesn’t have the world’s hardest job; he writes an advice column for a local newspaper while staring at the back of Jensen Ackles’ (the sport correspondent) head, fantasizing about the moment that Jensen will finally notice him. Jared’s never been the smoothest guy in the world, but when a chance work opportunity throws the two of them together, he hopes that he can convince Jensen that they’re made for each other.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Follow Your Heart (But Take Your Brain With You)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [whispered_story](https://archiveofourown.org/users/whispered_story/gifts).



> The Oakbank in the story is situated somewhere in the US. Title is a quote by Alfred Adler. Written for **akintay/whispered_story** as part of spn_j2_xmas. I saw that workplace AUs were one of your likes, so I went with that and tried to incorporate some of your other likes. I hope that you enjoy reading this and that you have a wonderful holiday period! Beta’d by the awesome **tipsy_kitty** – thank you.
> 
> I am just clarifying that I added and then removed the Bottom Jensen tag. I won't be re-adding the tag. -BH

 

No one takes Jared's advice column seriously. That's what his online reviews claim anyway; they said that his advice is something akin to what your basic person on the street could tell you, and that he writes like a tenth grader. However, he gets a lot of emails claiming that he's saved people's lives (okay _one_ , but still), and some that express gratitude. If he is being honest, Jared’s job sucks but it’s steady and it pays well (if you factor in his freelance gigs anyway). Jared doesn't really remember how he ended up working for the paper. He completed his journalism degree, wrote for a couple of online sites and migrated to this paper somehow. His best friend, Chad, the film reviewer, probably had something to do with it.

Not that Jared cares when the object of his affections has his desk stationed right across from his. Jensen Ackles, sports correspondent, who's won a shit ton of awards and is definitely too good for a small paper that isn't distributed any further than their sleepy town. There's an air of mystery surrounding Jensen, a sort of _elusive air_ about his presence here. Jared often wonders why anyone who used to work for _Sports Illustrated_ and the _New York Times_ would want to work here. He's tried asking his co-workers but they're not as interested as he is.

Jared doesn't buy that they're busy when they say they are. Playing Pac-Man online does not constitute as _busy_.

"Are you still pining after Ackles?" Chad asks right after he throws a balled up piece of paper at Jared's head. Jared makes a show of slowly looking away from where Jensen's typing away at his computer, before shrugging nonchalantly, and saying, "Nope." Chad raises an eyebrow.

"What? I'm just curious about him, that's all."

It's a valid statement.

The only person that Jensen speaks to is Jeff Morgan, the entertainment (because the word _showbiz_ is classless) writer and co-editor, and that's because they are old friends. There'd been some rumours in the beginning, about Jensen being involved in some sort of controversy up in New York City. Needless to say, none of them really had the connections (or in his co-workers case, cared enough) to find out what happened, so they all gave up pretty quickly. Except for Jared, and apparently he wasn't as discreet as he thought he was.

Luckily, he didn’t really give a shit what these guys thought.

The only person he was interested in impressing was Jensen Ackles, and little did he know that he’d soon get his chance.

"I don't know why you're so interested in some hotshot who thinks that we're beneath him," Beaver says from the other side of Jared. Beaver, who draws the daily comic strip, generally hates everyone, so his words generally go in one ear, and out of the other. Jared likes to practice what he preaches, meaning that Beaver and his negative energy are to be ignored. Wisely though, he doesn’t say that out loud. Chad says something agreeable, and Jared promptly blocks out the conversation. He’s gotten good at tuning out voices, a necessary skill to have when you work in a room packed full of people who _never shut the fuck up_ and regularly force him to sit through One Direction songs on Pandora.

Sometimes, Jared wonders if this place is really hell.

Of course, at the moment, he happens to look up to find Jensen Ackles standing by his cubicle, with an unimpressed look on his face. Jared almost swallows his tongue, because, _holy fucking shit,_ Jensen’s even more gorgeous close up. Idly, Jared wonders how his hair looks today on a scale of one to stupid.

“Are you Jared?” Jensen asks, and Jared can’t help glancing at the giant noticeboard at the back of the office with all of the staff members’ names and pictures on it. According to Sandy, their editor, it’s important that they all make an effort to get to know one another.

Perhaps it’s a rhetorical question.

“Yes,” he says quickly when Jensen begins to frown. “How can I help you?” Jared mentally pats himself on the back for not jumbling up his words. Even though he tells his readers that contrary to belief, first impressions aren’t the be all and end all, they’re still pretty damn important.

“Misha Collins broke his arm yesterday afternoon,” Jensen says. Jared blinks. He has no idea who that is. Jensen must see that on his face because he continues, “He’s my photographer. And I need a couple of shots of a charity golf game happening today. Sandy says that you know your way around a camera.”

Jared does know his way around a camera, but he also needs to find his way around tomorrow’s advice column, and select the letters that they’re going to feature. However, when it comes to working or spending the rest of the day with Jensen Ackles - there’s only going to be one winner.

_Dear JP,_

_My girlfriend recently bought me a yellow sweater. It was a nice gesture and all but I hate the color yellow. How do I tell her that I hate the sweater?_

**Color Me Blue**

Dear Color Me Blue,

_Don’t tell her. Look up DIY projects you can do with old sweaters and regift it to her. Problem solved._

**JP.**

_P.S. Here’s an example:_

_ _

_\--_

Jared joins Jensen in his car half an hour later, armed with the paper’s Canon 6D and his iPad. Even though writing on a tablet is a fucking pain, Jared’s decided that it’s probably in his best interest to make sure he gets his column done by his deadline. Jensen doesn’t seem too impressed when he asks what Jared is doing.

“What have you been doing all morning?”

“Playing Pac-Man, paying my internet bill, phone bill, online grocery bill,” Jared says. “It takes me an hour to get the column done. Sometimes I have to make up some of the questions. It seems as though the only people who can be bothered to submit anything are jealous housewives.”

“Huh,” Jensen says. After that he doesn’t really say much, just some vague non-committal answers when Jared asks some very, very general and not at all intrusive questions.

\--

Dear JP,

_I listened to your advice and attempted to turn the sweater into some throw pillows. Now, being a resourceful guy and all, I tried to cut corners. I ended up in ER for nine hours after getting stuck to my glue gun. My girlfriend is understandably pissed. What do I do?_

_Color Me Stupid_

Dear Color Me Stupid,

_I’m sorry to hear that. Maybe buy her something nice? Maybe a nice sweater?_

JP

\--

Jared next sees Jensen at five in the afternoon, a week after the golf game. There’s a knock on his apartment door and when Jared goes to open it, dressed in a wife beater and sweats, he finds Jensen standing in his doorway. Jensen spends far too long looking Jared up and down silently before he says anything. Jared can’t help noticing the way he blushes a little as he tells Jared that he needs him to snap some pictures of a local baseball game.

Naturally, Jared has to share the latest update with someone. Jensen’s into him; he _must_ be.

“He checked you out?” Chad doesn’t sound like he believes Jared. Or rather, Chad is concentrating more on his game of Minesweeper and is just repeating back Jared’s words. Jared throws a balled up heap of rubber bands at him.

“Yes!” he says. “And then he kept leaning into me at the game, and he actually spoke in full sentences and shit.”

“Just like a normal person,” Chad says. “Congratulations. You finally have proof that Jensen Ackles is not a robot.”

“Okay, but now he’s sending me messages via my column!”

“Or,” Chad says. “You’re just imagining things.” Jared sighs. He needs a new best friend.

It turns out that the message was from his neighbour’s kid, which explains how they knew about the strategically placed sock on one of his garden gnomes. When he informs Chad of this revelation, he receives a long look before Chad walks away while yelling, “There’s something wrong with you!”

Jared ignores him because _Jensen Ackles_ is heading over towards his desk. He tries to make himself look busy but ends up spilling his coffee all over his keyboard and shirt.

By the time Jared looks up, Jensen looks thoroughly amused.

“Can I help you?” Jared asks in his most professional tone. He might as well try to save some face.

“I was wondering if I could have a word with you. In Jeff’s office.”

Five minutes later and impressing Jensen is the last thing on his mind. Jared is _livid_. According to Jensen, the paper could save money by reducing his hours and running his column once a week.

“I don’t just write advice columns, you know? I’m the schmuck who cobbles together the job advertisements and employment section, not that anyone appreciates it!” Sandy, Jeff _and_ Jensen all stare at him oddly and Jared snaps his mouth shut. He takes a deep breath and takes a step backwards.

“Actually were about to suggest that you take over as Jensen’s official photographer,” Sandy informs in a slow voice. “At least until Misha comes back. We have a great series planned and Jensen tells me you're the best man for the job.”

Jeff nods enthusiastically. “And Sandy and I appreciate all the hard work that you do for the paper. It’s not going unnoticed.”

“You’re just saying that because I just made an ass of myself, aren’t you?” Jared asks while silently pleading for the ground to open and swallow him whole.

“Hey, man, you can either accept the plaudits or leave them,” Jeff says with a shrug. “All I care about is meeting our deadlines.”

“That explains a lot,” Jensen says with a dry chuckle. “Maybe next time you should start with the _good_ news to stave off any meltdowns.”

“That was _not_ a meltdown,” Jared snaps indignantly. “I was just standing up for myself.”

“Okay, Sasquatch,” Jensen retorts teasingly. “How about I buy you a coffee to make up for any confusion?”

Jared’s mind immediately zeroes in on the word _coffee_ and instantly bounces along to _omg, is he asking me out_?

Those thoughts evaporate when he realises that Jensen is waving a twenty dollar bill in his face.

“Black, no sugar,” he says. “And whatever you’re having.”

Jared sighs as he takes the money and departs the office.

\--

_Dear JP,_

_That didn’t work. She dumped me. She said that she couldn’t be with a guy that she couldn’t trust. What do I do now?_

**_Color Me Heartbroken_ **

_Dear Color,_

_I’m sorry to hear that. Maybe get another girlfriend? You’ll either find love with someone new, or make your ex-girlfriend jealous enough to take you back. Give it a try and let me know how it goes!_

**_JP._ **

\--

It's only when Jared gets home and opens his work email that he wonders why he fought so hard to keep his advice column. His inbox is full of horny teenagers, bored housewives and Mr Yellow Sweater (who's sounding more and more like a prank) and women that he’s afraid of offending. It’s almost a long running joke at this point. Still, working on the column is going to be a hell of lot better than _working with Jensen_.

The series Jensen’s planning on doing is called ‘Life after Sport’, whereby he interviews three former sportspeople. They’re talking full-length, feature spread interviews and Jared has no idea how to plan any of that. Truthfully, he can’t really understand why Jensen wouldn’t just wait for Misha to come back.

Unless--

“Wait, so you think that Jensen’s made you his wingman because he secretly wants to get into your pants?” Chad’s eyeing him warily by the coffee maker and Jared’s feeling pretty stupid. He empties three packets of sugar into his mug and shrugs. So it does sound silly - though, Jensen _did_ check him out.

“It’s a possibility,” he says. “I mean, yes, I took a photography course and I’ve done basic shoots before but a feature like this requires someone with talent.” He realises belatedly that they just can’t afford to _pay_ anyone with said talent. Jared lets his shoulders droop and Chad pats him consolingly.

“Maybe you’ll find someone at the singles event tomorrow night.” Jared groans loudly. He’s been dreading that ever since Sandy announced that the paper was developing its own dating service. Jared find it ironic that they have money for _that_ but not a completel overhaul of their garish, poorly designed website.

“I’m thinking of pretending to be sick for that,” he tells Chad. “I do _not_ want to be paired up with any of you people. Or any of the random people that Sandy’s hiring. No offence.”

Chad wrinkles his nose. “None taken, buddy. None taken.”

\--

_Dear JP,_

_I feel as though you’re not taking me seriously. My ex and I were talking about marriage and kids. I don’t want another girlfriend. You owe it to me to help win her back._

**_Color Me Still Heartbroken_ **

_Dear Color,_

_How is that you could talk to your girlfriend about such life-changing events but not about your distaste of the colour yellow? Perhaps you should consider that._

**_JP_ **

\--

The first player is Tom Welling, a retired NFL quarterback, who played for the Packers in the midst of his peak and eventually quit the game after a turbulent year with the Raiders.

Jared’s admittedly a small-town kid (who made the mistake of ending up in another small town) but he’s never really been into sports. They’re all way too long for someone with an attention span as small as his. He can’t even sit through one game of a tennis match. So when Jensen is giving him background on Welling he merely smiles and nods. He does contemplate asking Jensen why they’re creeping around outside Welling’s mega-mansion just outside of town but decides not to. At least not until he trips over something and a loud alarm starts blaring, half frightening him to death.

“This is bad,” he says for what feels like the tenth time. The noise has yet to subside and currently, he’s pressed up behind the guy he happens to have a crush on, hoping to hell that this doesn’t end up with both of their mugshots in their own frickin’ newspaper. “This is really, really bad.”

Jensen shifts slightly and even in the evening’s dim light, Jared can make out the glare in his eyes. “You’ve said that already.”

“It seemed worth repeating,” Jared snaps, levelling his own glare at Jensen. “Seriously what the hell are we doing here?”

Crush or no crush, Jared doesn’t intend on going to jail just because Jensen’s hot and he’s weak. Very, very weak.

“Investigating!” Jensen retorts with an aborted hand gesture. “There are rumours that Welling’s recreational habits are a little more extreme than most, and in a small town like this there’s only one time of the day when supply will reach him.”

Before Jared can even begin to respond to that, the sound of dogs barking cuts into the blare of the alarm. Jared’s a huge dog-lover and all but the noise is so feral that it takes all of his strength not to panic and run away screaming.

“Just so you know,” he says tightly. “You and I are going to have a _long_ conversation about morals and ethics when we make it out of this mess.”

\--

_Dear JP,_

_I’ve been a long-time reader of this column, mostly because it’s hilarious. Certain posts have been catching my eye of late. You see, I gifted my ex-boyfriend a yellow sweater. I know that he’s not too keen on the color but I was concerned that he wasn’t too be trusted. If a man can lie about a sweater, he can lie about anything. And boy, were my suspicions confirmed. He’s a liar._

**_Ex-Future-Mrs Color Me Lies_ **

_Dear Ex-Future Mrs Color Me Lies,_

_I’m sorry to hear that you felt that your boyfriend wasn’t being truthful. Do you think that tricking him with a sweater was a better option that confronting him face-to-face? And are you aware that you seem to be engaging in some irrational behavior?_

**_JP_ **

\--

“Please stop pouting.” Jensen’s watching him with an amused look on his face, but Jared doesn’t find this funny. This is the ugly side of journalism that he absolutely hates. The cruel, dirty, part of it where people are exposed just to appease readers' idle curiosity. He’s not surprised that Jensen operates in this manner - he wouldn't have been so successful back in New York if he didn’t have a few tricks up his sleeve.

“I’m not pouting.” He is. He really is. He’s also annoyed that the tortellini that Jensen cooked for them both smells amazing but he has no appetite. It sucks that Jensen cooking dinner for him is being tainted by this dark cloud.

“What do you want me to do, Jared?” Jensen snaps angrily. “Walk up to Tom’s house tomorrow and stick to a bunch of stock questions? That’s boring. We need an actual _story_.”

“This is Oakbank, Jensen,” Jared replies. “Not New York City where each face is a different one, or freaking Hollywood where everyone is too high to notice anyone else. This is a small town. We don’t do exposes. We report the news. I write a shitty column. We do it honestly and with integrity.”

Jensen claps his hands sarcastically and for the first time since he laid eyes on the man, Jared sees a side of him that he doesn’t like.

“Why does this bother you?” he asks Jared. “It’s not your neck on the line, it’s not your name on the by-line. You’re here to take pictures. That’s it.” Call Jared a hopeless romantic but he’s sure that he sees a hint of doubt in Jensen’s eye. Maybe this is just what Jensen tells himself that he has to do.

“It bothers me because you’re a good journalist,” he answers. “You shouldn’t be working for the Oakbank Times, but for some reason you are. Probably because you resorted to the same underhanded tactics you’re trying to use on Welling. What I’m saying is that here, in Oakbank, we don’t need that. We just want to read a good story. And you’re more than capable of making this feature amazing.”

“Actually I was fired from my last job because I was fucking my boss,” Jensen remarks casually. “But you were kind of close.”

Jared’s ashamed to say that his mouth falls open and stays that way for some time.

The embarrassment is slightly worth it when he gets home and sees that Jensen’s texted him. It’s just one word. A simple ‘ _thanks_ ’ but it means something to him.

\--

_Dear JP,_

_Do you think that your employers are getting good value for money in terms of your column?_

**_You Know Who I Am_ **

_Dear You Know Who I Am,_

_I’m fairly confident that my employers are happy with my work. I’m sitting here and replying to you aren’t I? I hope that answers your question. Thank you for writing in._

 

**_JP._ **

\--

The interview with Tom takes place the next day and while Jared doesn’t hear much of it, Tom is friendly and approachable during the shoot. Jared still has _no_ idea what he’s doing here, but he has a look online and decides that they can’t go wrong with a simple shoot in Tom’s amazingly beautiful big yard.

“Man, I’d kill to have a place like this,” Jared muses as he’s packing up the camera. Tom’s been casually flirting with him all afternoon, which was all kinds of fun until Jensen returned from a phone call and spent the next hour sending cold looks in his direction.

Tom’s grins at him, displaying his perfectly white, dazzling teeth. “You’re more than welcome to pop by whenever you’re in the area.” Jared smiles back at him and simply nods, not wanting to set Jensen off.

He waits until they’re back in the car to ask Jensen what the hell is wrong with him.

“I am perfectly fine,” Jensen tells him. “Just a little nauseated from watching you and Welling flirting for three hours.”

“I was trying to make him feel comfortable on camera!” Jensen doesn’t seem to hear Jared’s rebuttal because he steamrolls right past it.

“You really want to date a guy like Welling, who admits that he’s not the nicest person to be around and oh, sometimes he goes to ’great lengths’ to re-create that maximum high that allows him to sort of relive his glory days and--” Jensen cuts himself off abruptly and Jared’s so stunned that he almost misses a stop sign. The way the car lurches forward when he hits the brakes doesn’t do much to ease the tension.

They spend the rest of the drive in silence.

\--

_Dear JP,_

_So, maybe I haven’t been honest. I did plan on regifting the yellow sweater but not to my girlfriend. She’s right. I am a liar. But I’m ready to change. How do I do this?_

**_Color Me Lies_ **

_Dear Color Me Lies,_

_Have you considered therapy?_

**_JP._ **

\--

When Jared tells Chad that Jensen is clearly jealous and upset that Tom was flirting, Chad gives him a long, hard look. They’re by the coffee maker again, Chad stirring methodically as Jared empties out three packets of sugar into his mug. The coffee sucks but it’s free, and it gives him time to mingle. Though, he’s thinking that he should have just gone to Starbucks and parted with his last few dollars for the month. It tastes awful.

“Okay, so, that’s one theory,” Chad says, in his most polite ‘I think you’re an idiot’ voice. “Maybe he felt that you were being unprofessional.” Jared considers this and dismisses it instantly. He’s _always_ professional.

“Well, we can put it to the test, right,” he says. “I mean, Tom asked me out and—“ He’s interrupted by a loud sound, and he and Chad both turn to find Jensen standing behind them, the cracked pieces of his once whole mug lying at his feet. Before either of them can respond, Jensen stammers something about a mop and clean-up and practically runs away,

Jared turns to Chad.

“See?!” They say in unison. Jared frowns. Chad frowns. They square off for a few seconds before Chad shrugs.

“Whatever dude, I’m going back to my desk.”

\--

_Dear JP,_

_I went to a therapy session like you suggested and some good came out of it. I’ve decided to make my girlfriend dinner and discuss everything. The only problem is that I have no idea what to make? Any ideas?_

**_Color Me Chef_ **

_Dear Color,_

_Buy a cookbook. It will have all the ideas that you could ever want. Trust me._

**_JP._ **

\--

Jared must have really pissed off the man upstairs, because he’s matched with Jensen at the paper’s singles event, which is awkward because they’re not really talking to each other. Quite frankly, Jared’s not sure why they even ‘matched’ or ‘pinged’, whatever terminology is being used. On the basis of their interactions so far, he’s resolved that they have absolutely nothing in common.

Jensen smirks at him slightly when Jared takes his seat across from him and Jared resists the urge to punch him. They’re all at a restaurant in town, and Jared glances over and sees Chad sitting with Sophia, the business reporter. She looks irritated and he stifles a laugh.

She is _way_ out of Chad’s league.

“You remember that time you kept getting a lot of prank calls?” Jensen asks suddenly, voice too loud and startling.

Jared frowns. “Yeah?” He has no idea what this has to do with them being on some kind of ‘date’.

“That was because Chad wrote your number on the door of the disabled bathroom.”

Jared frowns and makes a note to get Chad back later.

“How do you even know about that?”

Once again, Jensen smirks at him. “I know everything.”

“Well do you know why I ended up being matched with _you_?” It comes out harsher than he’d intended and there’s a brief flicker of hurt on Jensen’s face. Jared swallows down his guilt and opens his mouth to apologise but Jensen speaks first.

“I’m guessing that they used a basic system to match all of us,” he replies. “Common interests like taste in music, movies, food et cetera, so, yeah. Guess we like the same stuff.”

“Oh, really, _Good Will Hunting_ is your favourite movie too?” Call Jared a cynic, but he really doesn’t see it. Not after Jensen’s frosty attitude since they started working together.

“Actually, it’s my second favourite, first is _Dead Poet’s Society_.”

Jared’s eyes widen in surprise. “That’s my _second_ favourite movie.”

After that revelation, the proverbial dam seems to break. They talk about the movies for a little while and general stuff – music, interests, food – it’s a little stiff at first but they soon warm to each other, and Jensen loosens up enough to reveal that he’s glad to have a reprieve from working with Misha.

“Well, the best of the best weren’t available, so I ended up with the best of the mediocre. Misha was okay but he was always looking for bizarre, obscure angles. It got annoying after a while. All I need is someone who can take _excellent_ photographs without talking so damn much.” Jensen stops and aims a side glance at Jared. “Actually I’m good with taking excellent pictures part. That’s what’s most important.”

Jared stares at him incredulously. “Are you saying that I _talk_ too much?”

“I’m not saying that at all,” Jensen retorts, though the smirk on his face says otherwise. Jared huffs slightly but he doesn’t argue; he’s been told by various other people that he tends to err on the wrong side of _chatty_ but he’s admitting and denying nothing. “I like listening to you talk.”

There’s something in the way that he says it makes Jared stop and _really_ look at him.

Sure, he’s been talking big to Chad, but right here in this moment he’s completely convinced that Jensen’s into him. He’s just not sure if he’s ready for the changes that will come with that, which probably explains why the next words out of his mouth are:

“So how does a hot-shot like you end up in a small town like this? Besides the whole fucking your boss thing?” Jensen’s shoulders tense visibly and Jared instantly regrets asking.

“I...needed a break,” Jensen confesses. “There was the whole fucking my boss thing, which didn’t really go well. I wanted to make things official and he was too busy lining up potential _wives_.”

Jared grimaces. “Ouch.”

“Yeah,” Jensen says with a snort. “So you can see why I’ve sworn off dating anyone I work with.”

 _That_ catches Jared by surprise. Jensen’s looking at him pointedly; the message in his eyes is loud and clear.

Oh.

“That’s cool,” he says before Jensen can mistake his silence for hurt or something. “This is just a silly mock night for the dating service. Just make sure you write nice things about me on the feedback form.” Jensen promises that he will but Jared doesn’t really hear anything past the thundering in his chest.

\--

_Dear JP,_

_Dinner was a disaster. I think I accidentally gave my girlfriend food poisoning. How can I make this up to her?_

**_Color Me Fail_ **

_Dear Color,_

_By staying away from the kitchen. Forever._

**_JP._ **

\--

“You were a little snippy with Yellow Sweater,” Chad says when they reconvene at the coffee maker two days later. “I was right about Jensen wasn’t I?”

“Do you want a cookie?” he retorts, not really in the mood to talk – especially about the guy who’s currently trampling over his heart. Chad stops mid-stir and frowns at him.

“You need me to deck him?” he asks gruffly. “’Cause I will if I need to.” Bizarrely enough, Chad’s non-threatening threat makes him feel a little better. He shakes his head.

“I have to go and take pictures for his second interview,” he tells Chad. “Luckily this one is a retired semi-professional _women’s_ tennis player, so I won’t get wrapped on the knuckles for flirting.” He cracks a smile at the irony and Chad slaps his shoulder playfully.

“He smiles!” Chad crows. “Look, I know I give you shit about Jensen but if he doesn’t want you, he’s an idiot.”

Jared smiles at his friend weakly. “Thanks, man.”

\--

_Dear Color,_

_I wasn’t very helpful last time. I’m sorry about that. Apologize about the food poisoning and maybe stick to restaurants while you get a hang of the whole cookbook thing, okay?_

**_Jared_ **

_Dear Jared,_

_She’s threatening to take me to court. She thinks I did it on purpose._

**_Color Me Broke_ **

 

_Dear Color,_

_…have a look on this website just in case:<http://www.worldlawdirect.com/>_

 

_That’s all I’ve got._

**_Jared_ **

\--

“This is fucking hopeless, for fuck’s sake.” Jared isn’t really one for random outbursts but his column is kicking his ass today. His response to Yellow Sweater is easy – snark. The rest? Not so much. What the hell is he supposed to tell ‘Martha’ regarding her husband banging the damn gardener? That unfortunately, Oakbank is a hotspot for clichés? He’s guessing that wouldn’t go down well. And then there’s the guy with the lice infestation – seriously? Jared’s tempted to write ‘Get some fucking shampoo’ and leaving it up to the editor to fix.

Jensen is watching him with a raised brow when Jared finally turns to acknowledge him. They’re at Jensen’s apartment, putting the second interview together. Much like with Tom, Jared just went with whatever worked and did a basic photoshoot of the tennis player, Kristen Bell, around her house. It was less fancy than Tom’s place but still nice enough to provide a decent backdrop.

“Are you okay?” Jensen asks when Jared says nothing. “Do you need any help?”

Jared snorts. “Larry over here wants to know if he has _lice_. You wanna help with that?” Jensen’s eyes widen and he holds his hands up.

“Alright, look, I might not be able to help with Mr Larry Lice, but actually, I think there’s more that you could be doing with your column,” Jensen says. “Skim down the reader questions and maybe try writing an editorial on common themes – employment, health, whatever.”

“You’re saying that I should write help guides?” Jared frowns. That’s not really what he’s contracted to do, though Jeff and Sandy didn’t exactly hold a gun to his head and demand that he stick to a particular format.

Jensen shrugs. “I’m saying that you should _write_. You have a journalism degree – _use_ that, don’t just let it fester because Jeff and Sandy have you channelling your inner Dear Abby.”

Jared cocks his head to the side as he considers that – an actual piece of journalistic writing instead of being Oakbank’s resident Agony Aunt. It sounds like a good idea, and it sounds doable, so long as he doesn’t write about relationships because Jensen is proof of his lack of expertise there.

“Thanks,” he says softly. “I’ll take that on board and run it by Jeff, see what he says.”

Jensen nods, with an unreadable look in his eyes. “Tell Larry to sort that shit out though. If he’s writing to the local paper about, he must be totally fucking clueless. We don’t need a lice epidemic in Oakbank. You of all people would suffer greatly.”

Jared rolls his eyes and shakes his hair out teasingly. Jensen wishes he had hair as awesome as his.

\--

_Dear Jared,_

_I managed to convince her that it was an accident. She even came over for lunch the other day – all store bought, of course. We actually had a nice time. How do I make sure that I don’t screw up again?_

**_Color Me Hopeful_ **

_Dear Color,_

_Just keep doing what you’re doing. Oh, and stay away from the kitchen. And sweaters._

**_Jared_ **

\--

The last of the interviewees is Aldis Hodge, an NBA point guard whose aunt happens to live in Oakbank. Jensen sends him a text at the start of the day to say that they’re pushing the interview back a day and Jared finds himself trudging to the office on a gloomy, Thursday morning. So much for a relaxing Friday.

“So, how are things with Loverboy,” Chad asks when they convene at the coffee maker. Jared sighs to himself wistfully as he thinks about how…tense things have been between him and Jensen. Sure, they get along and do their whole witty banter thing, but it’s not the same. Jensen’s _distant_ and Jared doesn’t know how to handle that, so he’s equally as distant.

It pains him to say that he will be a little bit grateful once he doesn’t have to work so closely with the other man.

Chad listens patiently as he blurts all of this out and levels him with a disappointed glare.

“So that’s it, you’re just going to give up?”

“I mean, yeah,” Jared says stupidly. Isn’t this what they discussed last time? “Aren’t we on the same page here? I can do better, blah, blah, blah.”

“Same page?” Chad splutters. “Jared, we’re not even in the same damn _library_. If you like the dude, quit with the woe-is-me act, stop pussyfooting around and do something. Hell, turn up at his house naked. Wait, actually don’t do that – that’s an arrestable offence.”

Jared blinks at his friend rapidly. He’s lost for words.

“Huh,” Beaver says from wherever he came from. He nudges Jared with his shoulder as he reaches for the milk cups. “Normally, I’d be the last to say anything nice about Ackles but he’s actually been more approachable since Jared started working with him.”

Jared frowns. “What does that have to do with me _dating_ him?” Beaver grunts and rolls his eyes.

He scratches at his beard and Jared watches, oddly fascinated.

“I’m just saying that while I watched you staring at his ass for God knows how long, he was also doing the same thing,” Beaver snaps. He pushes past them both, grumbling under his breath as he makes his way back to his desk.

Jared stares after him and tries to pretend that Beaver’s revelation hasn’t sent his stomach into a wave of cartwheels and intricate catapults.

\--

Jared’s startled out of sleep early Saturday morning when he hears frantic knocking at his door. With a loud groan, he stands up and rubs at his eyes blearily. He glances at his alarm clock. It’s 3:16AM. He considers grabbing his baseball bat, but decides against it. Maybe the sight of his bedhead will scare off any unwanted guest.

He regrets that thought the second that he sees that _Jensen_ is at his door. At three in the morning. In _his_ pajamas. His… _banana print_ pajamas. Jared’s sure that he blushes so hard that he has a new skin tone. He takes in Jensen’s ruffled hair and baggy sweatshirt and asks, “Did you drive here like that?”

It’s a serious question. And also kind of redundant but whatever. He’s well within his rights to ask.

“No, I just woke up and realised that I sleepwalked all the way to your house.” Jensen’s smiling slightly, despite the sarcastic response, and Jared beckons him in. Beaver’s words run through his mind once again, a loud chatter replacing the quiet he’d only just managed to find. He’s not sure what he’ll do if Jensen’s here to reject him again or screw with his head a little more.

They stop in Jared’s front room and end up standing there awkwardly.

“I…I want to apologise,” Jensen blurts out after a few seconds. “I knew- _know_ -that you like me and I let you down in the shittiest way possible. And that was wrong.”

Jared stares at him blankly and Jensen grimaces.

“Okay, so, I probably should have just led with what I came here to say – I _like_ you. And that’s why I asked you to work with me, that’s why I was jealous of Tom and why I think you deserve someone better than me.”

“Why would you think that?” Jared says, his voice barely a whisper. Apart from the admission that he slept with his former boss, Jared’s not seen Jensen look so unsure of himself.

There’s a depreciating laugh and then: “In case you haven’t noticed, I’m kind of an asshole.”

“I like assholes.”

In Jared’s defence, it’s three in the morning, he’s half asleep and the guy he’s been crushing on for as long as he can remember has just told him that he _likes_ him.

Liking assholes is definitely relevant here.

“I’m just going to pretend that you didn’t phrase that sentence like that,” Jensen says awkwardly. “But, okay, if you think that you can put up with me, then fine. Let’s do this.”

“Okay,” Jared replies slowly. “Okay.”

Jensen takes a step forward and kisses Jared without warning. Jared’s taken aback at first, but he soon gives into it. Jensen’s lips are warm and dry, just the right side of perfect. And as far as first kisses go, it’s not bad. It might just be the best one he’s ever had. Jensen pulls back after a while and Jared physically stops himself from chasing after him. He’s not the best at pacing his relationships – he tends to fall hard _fast_ and end up recovering from heartbreak slowly. Maybe it’s better that he leaves the technicalities up to Jensen.

“I just have one condition,” Jensen says. There’s a hint of guilt in his voice. “We can’t tell anyone at the office. That includes Chad.”

“He’s my _best_ friend,” Jared argues. “I can’t not tell him, I mean, he’s only heard about me wanting you for the last year.”

Jensen sighs and shrugs. “Yeah, well, I don’t really want to be known as the dude fucking his co-worker. Not again.”

Jared rolls his eyes. They’ve been here before. He just doesn’t understand why Jensen bothered coming here at all.

It’s over before they’ve even started.

“I think you should go.” The force of the words startles even Jared and he’s not surprised when Jensen throws a wary glance in his direction. “I am sorry that you and your ex-boss ended things on a bad note but I’m not about to sneak around like a teenager, Jensen. I want a real relationship. Not just sex and…what I want doesn’t correlate with what you’re offering. So, I’m sorry.”

“No, _I_ am,” Jensen mutters meekly before he leaves without any argument.

\--

_Dear Jared_

_I think I screwed things up again. Why does this keep happening? Let’s just say that there was a candle related incident. Don’t worry – no one was too hurt. But my girlfriend is now missing an eyebrow. Sigh._

**_Color Me Bad Luck_ **

_Dear Color_

_I’ve come to the conclusion that sometimes life just sucks, and we just have to deal with it anyway we can._

_I hope things work out._

**_Jared_ **

\--

Things are awkward when they meet to put the finishing touches to Jensen’s feature. He asks Jared for his input but Jared’s answers are noncommittal at best.

He's busy editing his images and trying hard not to bolt because his hands are shaking too much. It's not even that Jensen rejected him; he's just tired of the situation. He's tired of being here. Tired of wanting Jensen Ackles.

"I'm thinking of quitting." It's not what he means to say but that's what comes out. Alongside all of the Jensen drama, he has been thinking about doing something else. Going somewhere else. Somewhere that isn't Oakbank. Somewhere that doesn't require him seeing Jensen every day.

"Oh," Jensen responds sluggishly, his hands still above his keyboard. "Not because of...me? Because I've been impressed with the work you've done with the photos and I would hate to be the reason why you quit the paper. You love it here."

Jared thinks about how that's true, and he considers how he would advise himself in this situation. Keep a calm and clear head; think before you respond. Try not to be too angry. Well. Sometimes he's full of shit because he does the opposite of that.

"You've humiliated me, rejected me, been an asshole and turned up at a crazy hour of the day claiming you like me, but not enough for anyone to know about it," he snaps. "No, I'm leaving because the fucking coffee is shit."

"I'm--" Jared cuts Jensen off before he can utter another word.

"You are full of shit, Jensen. Seriously. Get over the fact that you fucked your boss. It happened. Shit happened. You really think he cares about his office conduct because everyone knows? And you really think that anyone at Oakbank Times would care if we dated? Do you?"

"I'm sorry, Jared." He looks apologetic enough, but it doesn't do anything to remove the pit in his stomach.

"Sorry's not good enough. Chad thinks that you've been letting me down gently the whole time. Everyone thinks that my stupid crush is a joke. You...you've hurt me a lot. And part of it is my fault because you were never mine to have. I shouldn't have entertained this, ever."

He gathers his computer and leaves, not even bothering to say goodbye.

\--

_Dear JP,_

_I made a huge mistake and hurt someone that I really care about. How do I fix things? I'm an asshole, but I think they're into that._

**_Anonymous._ **

_Dear Anon,_

_Don't bother._

**_JP._ **

\--

Jared finds himself at the coffee maker with Chad the next day. Chad's ranting and raving about some stupid movie he saw but Jared can barely hear him. He dumps his customary three packets of sugar into his mug and stirs methodically and wonders if he was too harsh with Jensen the previous afternoon. Yes, he's hurt but clearly that wasn't Jensen's intention. Or maybe he's just trying to excuse Jensen's actions because he likes him so much. He doesn't know. What he does know is that he has to clear the air and make sure that there is no underlying tension; they do have to work together after all.

"Are you even listening to me?" Chad's voice finally penetrates his inner thoughts and Jared looks up at his friend.

"Something about a bad movie you saw?" he tries hopefully. He doesn't want to get another Jensen-themed lecture from Chad. Not after everything.

Chad's frowns, and is just about to respond when another voice cuts in.

"I don't think you should leave." Jensen's suddenly in front of him and Jared finds himself flummoxed.

From across the room, he can clearly hear Beaver remarking that "it's like being in the middle of a fucking soap opera in here," which would be funny if Jared wasn't the one standing here. Chad mouths 'WTF' at him but there's not much Jared can do because Jensen steps forward and kisses him. It isn't the most passionate embrace given that Jared's too shocked to respond, but the motive behind the action is loud and clear.

Everyone can know.

Just as Jared is willing himself to come up with _some_ kind of response, Jensen pulls out a piece of paper from his shirt pocket.

"I am terrible at this kind of thing but, I, uh wrote something?" He sounds extremely nervous but that part of Jared that's usually followed by a full body cringe is slowly turning itself on.

"You wrote something?"

Jensen frowns and levels him with a confused gaze. "Uhm. Yes?"

"And you want to read it out in front of everybody?" Jared might be a little slow on the uptake here, but grand gestures are one thing, doing this in front of _everyone?_ Yeah, he's not really down for that.

"That was the general idea," Jensen replies, looking even more lost than he did before.

"It's pretty self-explanatory, Jared," Chad interjects. "Man takes out speech in front of crowded room. Man intends to read it out."

"Not only do I hate the way you phrased that but...does this make me the Jennifer Aniston character in every single romantic comedy she's done?"

Beaver calls out, "Yes" just as Chad cocks his head and says, "No, less Rachel and more Julia Roberts."

"I mean, technically, Jared does have the hair to be the Jennifer Aniston character," Sandy adds in her two cents and Jared's mortification level increases significantly.

"So...just to be clear, making an emphatic speech about how much of an idiot I was isn't what I should be doing?" Jensen asks. There's a loud chorus of groans.

"Look, as much as we'd all like to see you both get your asses together, we don't really care about how you get to that point," Jeff says from his spot by the photocopier. "So, you go off and do that while we mock you mercilessly behind your back."

"The joke is on all of you because I at least know why Jensen came to work here in the first place!" Jared probably shouldn't be gloating about that but he's starting to see why Jensen was against everyone knowing - they're basically opening themselves up to everybody's (unwanted) input.

Jensen is the one to raise an eyebrow at him. "They all know, Jared. Jeff told them at a meeting when I first joined." Jared's mouth falls open. Well. That explains why everyone was so disinterested.

"Where was I?"

Jensen smirks at him. "I sent you to get us all coffee and we basically started without you." Jared's not sure if Jensen's implying what he thinks he is, but he's so going to kick the shit out of Chad later.

"Whatever, we'll discuss this later. Can we go and discuss your damn speech in _private?"_

Chad guffaws loudly. "You mean _dick_ scuss, right?"

The joke is followed by an awkward silence and Chad throws his hands up dejectedly. "Seriously? Not one laugh?"

Jared sighs. He really needs better friends.

\--

_Dear Jared_

_So, my girlfriend and I are broken up for good. Actually, it's a funny story. We were arguing over the sweater (I'm coming to realize that accepting it might have just been the best thing to do?) and I just realised that if I'm doing so much and over-exerting myself, maybe this isn't something I want to pursue. And oddly enough, five minutes after I had that brainwave, I met this girl. Well, woman. She's married. Three kids. But, I mean, we have a connection, right? That shouldn't matter, right?_

**_Color Me Moved On_ **

_Dear Color,_

_Read back your 'question' and if it still sounds like a good idea - go for it. You're an idiot, and I suspect that you'll always be an idiot but hopefully you come to your senses right about....now?_

_No?_

_Oh. Well. I tried. Good luck._

**_Jared_ **

\--

They end up at Jensen's apartment, which isn't exactly neutral ground but it doesn't hold the memories that Jared's does. The drive over was made in silence; in Jared's case, the buzz of Jensen's admission in the office has died down and Jensen just seems _nervous_. That kind of bothers Jared a little, but also, it gives him some hope. Maybe this isn't all one-sided, and maybe he doesn't like Jensen more than Jensen likes him. Right now, all Jared has is blanket of maybes and he hopes that what Jensen has to say doesn't cut through it like a fine knitting needle.

"Do you want anything?" Jensen asks once they're inside. Jared shakes his head. He feels oddly calm, but knows himself well enough to realise that it's a façade. An emotional barrier erected so that he can save face in the here and now.

"Just say what you have to say." Jensen smiles wryly and the paper makes an appearance again. He hands it to Jared, who wastes no time in opening it.

It's blank.

"There was no speech," Jensen admits. "I didn't really get past not wanting you to leave. And kissing you. That was it. My grand plan. But you deserve more than that and I really want to try to give you that, if you'll let me. I...didn't want you to know about me and my boss because I knew there was something between us since my first day. That's why I tried so hard to stay away from you."

"Why? Is fraternising with a co-worker really that bad?" Jared can't help asking.

Jensen chuckles bitterly, "When the ex-co-worker you were in love with stabs you in the back, then yeah, it's the fucking worst prospect in the world."

"I didn't know that you..."

"Yeah," Jensen says. "But I'm not anymore. And I'd really love it if you gave me another chance."

"Okay," Jared agrees. "And I'm sorry for yelling at you yesterday. I was just, angry." That's putting it lightly but it is irrelevant in light of recent events. He shifts on the couch, turning so that he's directly facing Jensen.

Jensen smiles wanly. "I understand. I'd have been pissed too. I was angry at myself." Silence falls and they regard each other carefully, neither one wanting to break tranquility.

Eventually Jared has to because he can't take it anymore. "Can I ask you a question?"

"You just did." Jared rolls his eyes but asks his question anyway, "Why not tell me about what happened in NY if you had your whole fraternizing rule?"

Jensen shrugs, "Honestly, I thought you would have heard it on the grapevine. When you asked about it, I thought you were trying to get a rise out of me. Besides, it turns out that I'm not really a stickler for my own rules."

"Yeah, I kind of got that after you showed up at my apartment in three am in banana pyjamas."

“You want to stay for lunch?” Jensen asks. “I don’t really want to go back to the office. And we’re pretty much done with the feature. The first part should be ready to go for Monday.”

“Hey, I didn’t get a chance to read it!” Jared says in an affronted tone. “Did you call Tom out on his drug use?” Tom’s messaged a few times since they met, though for obvious reasons it hasn’t gone past pleasantries. Still, Jared doesn’t think the guy’s all that bad. He just might need a couple of stints in rehab. And better security.

Jensen pulls a face. “I thought better of that. But not because of that moral Oakbank shit you were talking about - I mean, we’ve all read Chad’s Lindsay Lohan interview. I did agree with what you said about being better than that. Sometimes, you have to pick the right story to tell.”

Jared finds that he can’t really argue with that.

\--

_Dear Jared,_

_So I thought better of the married woman. Well. Mostly because it turned out to be a Catfish situation. Marla wasn’t married with three kids. He was a thirty-six year old man with three cats. It made me think about my girlfriend again. She’s called me a few times, which is strange. But maybe I should hear her out?_

**_Color Me Catfished_ **

_Dear Color,_

_You can hear her out, but I get the sense that it’s the listening part you might have a problem with. I hope you didn’t share anything…’private’ with Marla._

**_Jared_ **

\--

Dating Jensen is kind of interesting. Misha returns and given that Jared's photographic skills aren’t really needed anymore, he spends most of his time at his desk putting his column together as well as the advice piece he’s now contributing to the paper. In the meantime, he and Jensen go out to dinner, movies, museums, local sports games and every single dating hotspot there is in town. There’s a disastrous bowling trip in the midst of that and Jared finds that his sentiment then is the same as it now - he kind of wishes they would just stay in for once.

“Ugh, I thought you would stop bitching about Ackles once he had sex with you,” Chad grumbles as he throws some sprinkles onto his mocha. It’s a Monday, so Jared’s not surprised that Chad is grumpy. They finally have a new coffee machine, Jared finally has Jensen and life should be perfect but it isn’t. Chad turns to him and his eyes widen in realisation. “Wait, you guys haven’t…?”

“Shh!” Jared retorts with a quick glance around the office. Jensen’s at his desk, chewing on his pen and it would be gross if he didn’t have the world’s most perfect mouth but anyway, yeah. The pen is getting more action than Jared is at the moment. “We just haven’t had time.”

Chad groans audibly. “You’ve had time, Jared. So it must be something else. The question is, are you the one holding back or is he?”

Chad’s question is still lingering on his mind later that day when he meets Jensen at his apartment. They’re at the same point they’ve been for weeks, heavy making out and then--

“We should maybe call it night?” Right on clockwork, Jensen pulls back, leaving Jared like he’s been left in eye of a tornado. Usually, he laughs it off and just figures that he’ll bring it up later but Chad’s words ‘ _holding back_ ’ have switched on some kind of dormant switch in his mind.

“This isn’t really working,” he says. He grimaces immediately because he doesn’t mean it like _that._ “I mean, why do you always pull back just as we’re getting somewhere? I mean, I don’t mind waiting but, I…”

Jensen blushes. “Uh, I guess I thought we were taking things slowly? I don’t want you to think that I’m in this for one thing only. I mean, especially after the thing with my former boss…”

It takes Jared a while to connect the dots but when he does, he’s kind of disappointed.

“I wouldn’t judge you based on anything that happened in the past. I mean, I once ate Cheetos off another guy’s stomach, but you wouldn’t judge me for that would you?”

Jensen stares at him blankly.

“We were both pretty drunk at the time,” Jared says, fighting to cover up a blush of his own. Why his brain has picked now of all times to set itself to ‘stupid’ mode is a mystery to him.

“Please promise me that you won’t eat any processed snacks off my stomach?” Jensen says. “Especially not Cheetos. There’s nothing sexy about Cheetos.”

Jared laughs. “Oh, I don’t know, I like the way they’re shaped.” Jensen shakes his head at the (admittedly poor) joke and can’t help his own laughter. Jared’s all for lightening up the mood but he does really want to get to the bottom of all of this so that they can just _enjoy_ being together.

It doesn’t take much for him to tilt his head and catch Jensen’s mouth once again; he doesn’t bother to lead into it but attempts to pick up where they were before. He can taste the wine they had with dinner on Jensen’s lips and that coupled with their previous make-out session is enough to have him in a state of arousal. He leaves it up to Jensen to take them further and practically does a mental Mexican wave when Jensen’s hand snakes up his shirt and is _finally_ on his skin. Things only get better from that point, until Jensen dramatically sweeps everything off the table and pulls Jared downward.

"Actually, I'm just going to pick all of this up?” he says as he extracts himself from Jared. “We’re not having sex on my table. And I can’t get that Cheetos image out of my head.”

Jared groans inwardly as he reaches for his shirt.

“You can wait in my room if you want. It’s the first door on the left.” Jensen disappears into the kitchen before Jared can answer, so he makes his way to said room. The decor isn’t anything special. It’s mostly all cream and off-white. There are a few pictures spread around, including one on the nightstand that looks familiar. It’s a landscape shot that Jared took near Tom’s house. Jensen wanted to use it for the piece but Jared was - and still is - convinced that it was terrible. However, seeing it here and framed suddenly makes it look a whole lot better. And it makes Jared feel guilty about pushing this whole sex thing.

Jensen’s not some prize that he’s worked hard at to win; he’s a human being, and Jared’s ashamed of himself for being so...single minded. In the past, he’s had relationships that fizzled out shortly after they turned intimate and maybe there is that part of him that has some doubts. Maybe he’s been unknowingly pushing for this point because he’s scared of what might come after, but Jensen _likes_ him, and...he doesn’t need to have sex for that to become a reality.

It already is.

He ambles back out of Jensen’s room and retrieves his jacket from the hallway. Jensen pauses from where he’s retrieving a stack of magazines from the floor. Jared smiles at him and says, “Hey, I just remembered that I promised my neighbour that I’d help her clean her garden gnomes.”

“You could have just said that you were leaving,” Jensen says in between chuckles. “You are joking right?”

Jared grins sheepishly. “Well, I did promise her that, but uh, I didn’t give her a specific time. I just didn’t want to leave without giving a reason.”

“Garden gnomes?” Jensen asks. “Really?”

“They’re cute!” Jared replies. “I have three.”

Jensen seems disconcerted by that and Jared laughs. He leans over and ruffles Jensen’s hair playfully.

“I’ll see you at work tomorrow, okay?”

\--

_Dear Jared_

_So, my girlfriend wants to get married. What should I say?_

**_Color Me Engaged?_ **

_Dear Color,_

_Yes or no._

**_Jared_ **

\--

“There’s no way that this dude is engaged!” Jared rants as he pores over his emails carefully. For some inane reason, his Yellow Sweater questions have blown up over the last month. There’s even a ‘ _Dear Jared’_ meme now that the newspaper has gone digital (or well, more digital than the old circa-2000 website) and parts of his column are posted online. Yellow Sweater has been a conundrum for him really; Jeff and Sandy think the increased attention is good but Jared’s not really interested in advising someone who might not be real.

“Well, not until he says yes,” Jensen replies as he peers over his shoulder. They’re confined in Jared’s apartment because of the storm raging outside. It’s not high weather alert or anything but neither of them wants to be out in it. And things have been going well for the most part. The sex thing is still on a one-way lane to failure, but Jared doesn’t mind as much. It’s nice to know that Jensen is interested in him for _him_ and nice to take things slow, no matter how many dodgy porn links Chad forwards to him.

Speaking of Chad…”Why is there an email from Chad with the subject ‘XXX’. That’s weird.”

Jared slams his laptop shut and smiles tightly. “It’s probably just spam.” Jensen throws him a slightly sardonic grin as he goes back over to the couch. They’re watching some soccer game - well, Jensen is, while Jared sort of sits there and wonders if an alien has taken over his boyfriend as he hurls vitriol at the poor referee. Clearly Jared would make a shitty soccer fan, but that’s neither here nor there.

Jared frowns at himself and says, ‘Boyfriend?’ belatedly realising that he’s said it aloud. He clamps his mouth shut and hopes that Jensen didn’t hear him, but when has he ever been that lucky?

“What?” Jensen asks, turning away from the television to look at him. “Did you just say boyfriend?”

“I was just wondering if we were...you know, boyfriends?” Jared might as well come out with it, there’s no face left to save.

To his credit, Jensen doesn’t laugh in his face, just shakes his head fondly. “Well, I did tell my mom that I had a new boyfriend last time she called. I can always call her back and say, ‘I have garden gnome-loving manfriend’ instead.”

Jared chooses to ignore the garden gnome diss and focus on the other part of the statement. “You told your mom about me?”

There’s a loud crash outside, followed by the loud pounding of rain and the television cuts out. Jensen turns back to switch it off before he answers him.

“I did. And she’s happy that I’m not sleeping around with that filthy pig I used to work for. Those were her exact words.”

“I’m beginning to see why you’ve turned out the way you are.” It seems fitting that Jensen’s bluntness was inherited somehow.

“I think the power’s gone out,” Jensen says almost idly, ignoring Jared’s previous comment. “What should we do now?”

“I have an idea.”

"I can't believe that I agreed to this," Jensen says sometime later.

They're huddled under a poorly designed pillow fort, with the loud smattering of the rain for company. Jared kisses him in response because he can. He's happy, he realises. Happy here in this stupid pillow fort and he feels bad for being glad that Misha Collins broke his arm, but if that hadn't happened, he'd probably still be in his cubicle staring at the back of Jensen's head.

That thought makes him even more charged up than he was before so he doesn't give Jensen a chance to back away; he grabs a fistful of Jensen’s shirt and pulls him into another deep kiss. Jensen reacts eagerly, moaning softly as he kisses Jared back hard as their bodies align perfectly. Jared’s already half-hard and he can feel Jensen’s cock digging into his thigh. After some wiggling around and zipper negotiations, Jared pulls out Jensen’s cock, smoothing the precome against the head as Jensen latches onto his neck and sucks at it. Jared marvels at the soft, smooth velvety skin as he starts jerking Jensen off. It doesn't take long for Jensen to come, groaning loudly as white spurts coat Jared's hand.

"Can we take this upstairs now?" Jensen says breathlessly. He bats Jared's hand away gently. "I'm not really big on getting fucked in a pillow fort."

And well, when he phrases it like that, Jared's not going to argue.

Once they're in Jared's room and fully undressed, they resume kissing, simultaneously grinding against each other and moaning when their cocks brush. Jared palms Jensen’s ass, hands cupping each globe and rubbing at the smooth skin. He's since retrieved lube and condoms, and it doesn't take him long to slick his fingers. Jensen hisses slightly when Jared pushes the first finger past the tight ring of muscle but he tells Jared to keep going. One is replaced by two, and two by three before Jensen's a squirmy, sweaty mess and Jared's fumbling to roll the condom down on his cock. Jensen turns over at the last minute, and when they lock eyes Jared feels this surge of electricity passing through them. The staccato of his heartbeat matches the patter of steady, thundering rain outside and he wonders if Jensen's is in synch.

He lines himself up against Jensen's hole, pushing in slowly, almost as if he's counting down each torturous inch.

"I'm not gonna break," Jensen says, because sex with him wouldn't be complete without at least one sarcastic comment. Jared ignores him in favour of pulling out slowly and pushing in at the same pace as before. He leans forward to kiss Jensen messily, hoping to stave off another comment. He needs his recollection of this to be perfect and sarcasm free. He pushes back in as he deepens the kiss, rolling his hips forward so that he slips in easily.

After a few minutes of that he breaks the kiss, laughing breathlessly when Jensen tries to chase him. He braces himself and increases the pace of his thrusts, slamming into Jensen so hard that all he hears is the slip-slap of his balls hitting Jensen's ass. Jensen's making a racket, and Jared's kind of grateful that the storm is loud. He and his neighbors have long discovered that their walls are pretty thin. Jensen's hand finds his cock and he starts to jack himself off slowly, the movement of his hands in tandem with Jared's thrusts. Jared starts to feel pressure building up and that telltale tingle and he comes, body convulsing even has he slams into Jensen one last time.

Jensen shudders beneath him, coating his stomach in come once again, and Jared pulls out gently. He discards the condom and rejoins Jensen on the bed, eyes instantly drawn to kiss-swollen lips.

They make out for another few minutes before ending up locked in a tight embrace. Jensen lays his head on Jared's shoulder and they lie there in silence for a while as they catch their breath.

"So, how did that rank on your sex scale? Was it better than Cheetos guy or somewhere below that?" Jared laughs despite himself. Cheetos guy ended up being a huge cheater, but...he is okay with Jensen bringing it up. It is pretty funny.

"You're never going to let me hear the end of that are you?"

Jensen leans up and smiles at him softly. "Nope."

 

The next morning when they’re tidying up the heaped mess of Jared’s pillow fort, he wonders if they should set some ground rules for the office, especially because everyone knows about them and they’re probably going to go through that sex-now-everywhere phase and Jared doesn’t really want to get caught with his pants down at work.

“That was well worth the wait,” he says as he rolls up a blanket and glances at Jensen.

“Always is with me.”

Jared rolls his eyes good-naturedly. “We should talk about work, uh, we should probably not uh, fraternise at work. You know, to avoid any talk. Any more talk.” He cringes inwardly at himself.

“Good idea. Though I might be taking a few months out to work on a story about the FIFA bribery scandal with a few other reporters. It’s a pretty hot topic right now.”

Jared’s ashamed to say that he has no idea what that is, but hey, there’s always time to learn. Or not. “Sounds exciting.”

Jensen quirks an eyebrow. “You have garden gnomes named after _pop stars_. I think you and I definitely have differing views on exciting.”

Jared clasps his hands dramatically. “You mean, you're not a fan of Lionel Richie's theme song - All Gnome Long?" There is no theme song, but Jared finds it kind of hilarious that Jensen has such an aversion to gnomes so he’s not against overplaying his interest in them.

“You better hope that the storm didn't kill your precious gnomes,” Jensen grumbles, tossing a stray cushion at Jared’s head.

“Ha ha,” he retorts. “No, I put them in the garage. Lionel, Shakira and Britney are safe and sound.”

Jensen groans, but he’s distracted by the buzzing of his cell phone before he can say anything. Jared uses that time to rearrange the rest of the living room and think over everything quietly.

"So, we're good, right?" he asks when Jensen’s retrieved his jacket and is about to head out. They’ve got a couple of hours before they’re due at the office and Jared needs to go for a run while Jensen returns to his place.

"Yeah, just as long as you keep those things away from me,” Jensen says with an exaggerated grimace. “They creep me out.”

\--

It takes them approximately two weeks to break their no sex at work rule. Jared's in the storeroom looking for ink cartridges when Jensen comes in, and one minute they're kissing each other chastely and the next, Jared's back his pressed against the wall and his jeans are pooled around his ankles. Jensen's mouth is a perfect red 'O' around his mouth and he's doing his best not to make too much noise. He bites down onto his lip as Jensen's tongue swirls around the vein on the underside of his cock. He shifts as his balls tighten, tapping Jensen gently to let him know that he's about to come. That doesn't deter Jensen, who sucks at the tip, clearly not caring about the possibility that he might suck Jared's brains out. Jared comes with a bitten off cry, his eyes firmly planted on Jensen's cock, which is suddenly free of its denim confines. His mouth waters at the thought of being able to return the favour but Jensen seems to have another idea. He pushes Jared so that he's facing the wall and slides his cock between the V of Jared's legs. It doesn't take long for him to spill his release, and in between all of the sex sex sex on Jared's mind, he hopes that there's a box of Kleenex in here somewhere.

"Move in with me?" Jensen asks as they're straightening their clothes and Jared's hair. Jared chuckles. This isn't the first time that Jensen's asked. It probably won't be the last. It's way too soon and he thinks that Jensen knows that, because he only seems to ask after sex, and even then, he doesn’t exhibit any real seriousness.

Jared figures that he’ll be able to tell when they get to that point. Still, he doesn’t mind playing along.

"Only if the gnomes can come with me." He accompanies his riposte with laugh, which only continues when Jensen barely manages to conceal his shudder.

There's a loud bang on the door and Chad’s voice filters through. “How long does it take to get ink cartridge. And why is this door locked? Wait. Jensen isn't at his desk. Ugh. Really, Jared? At _work_?” He keeps going after that point but Jared tunes him out and diverts his attention back to Jensen. They’re not really touchy-feely, but something compels him to take Jensen’s hands and twine them with his.

"Still glad that you broke your rule?" he inquires.

Jensen squeezes his hand and smiles at him warmly and answers, "Best thing I've ever done.”

That tails off into a nice moment, where they stand there and kind of smile at each other stupidly. Jared might not be into glitzy Hollywood movies where everything works out perfectly, but he’s a romantic at heart.

Unfortunately, the moment is broken by renewed hammering on the door and replaced by the sound of Chad cursing wildly when he falls through said door. Jared shakes his head at a pleased looking Jensen, but says nothing. Jensen’s not Chad’s biggest fan and vice versa but he’s decided to leave them to it.

“I’ll see you at home,” Jensen calls as he saunters past, leaving Jared to help Chad up.

Chad knits his brows as he brushes dirty of his ratty Bills hoodie. “You know, next time you want to get laid at work, use the downstairs storeroom.”

“That place has cockroaches!” It’s Jared’s turn to make a wry face, because the mere suggestion is an insult to his personal hygiene.

Chad smirks at him. “Well, what’s a couple more cocks amongst many?”

Jared shakes his head in disgust. “You are a terrible human being.”

“That’s a step up from you always bitching about needing a better friend,” Chad shoots back. His face softens a little. “Being with Jensen is reflecting well on you.”

“Yeah,” Jared says with a slow grin. “It is.”

“And that’s all down to all of the awesome advice I gave you,” Chad adds. “Be sure to remember that later down the line.”

“Yeah, Chad,” Jared says with a wry smile. “It was all down to you.”

 _Fin_.

….but wait, there’s more! *points below*

 

* * *

* * *

The Oakbank Times

Page 12 | Dec 12, 2015

* * *

* * *

 

** **

**And yes, he’s real.**

** **

**BY JARED PADALECKI**

 

It seems like such a long time ago now that this fell into my inbox.

**_My girlfriend recently bought me a yellow sweater. It was a nice gesture and all but I hate the color yellow. How do I tell her that I hate the sweater?_ **

**_-Color Me Blue_ **

It was an innocuous question, one that I probably would have overlooked had I not wondered what kind of person would really need advice over a sweater. And it grew. Yellow Sweater (as he came to be called) and I communicated over a variety of topics, some which I really couldn’t submit to print. At one point, I was certain that he didn’t exist and that my co-workers were pulling an elaborate prank, but recently the man himself reached out to me and I caught up with him for a cup of coffee and lunch (cooked by someone else of course!). Here’s what he had to say.

JP: So…you are real! Gotta admit, I didn’t think any of it was real.

YS: I know. It’s hard to believe that anyone could be _this_ stupid, right?

JP: Well, I wouldn’t say stupid, but you seemed a little misguided. Hopefully you’re being a lot more honest with your girlfriend now.

YS: Actually, we’re not together anymore.

JP: You didn’t get engaged? I thought that she wanted to get married.

YS: [laughs]. She did. To someone else. Actually, I gave her something like what you suggested in your first response. It was covered in glue and I lost most of the skin on my fingers but it’s the thought that counts, right?

JP: Definitely. So, what happened next? How did you deal with her engagement?

YS: I didn’t really have time. ‘Marla’ cleaned out of all of my credit cards and I spent the last two months trying to convince the banks that I wasn’t some kind of fake Nigerian monarchist.

JP: There’s never a dull moment with you.

YS: [chuckles] I just have terrible luck. I actually attended my ex’s wedding a few weeks ago and her first dance was to ‘Yellow’ by Coldplay.

JP: No! How ironic.

YS: Right? It’s almost like she picked that song on purpose. At least now I have a legitimate reason to hate the color yellow.

JP: That’s true. And I trust that you’ll keep us all updated? Our readers would love to hear more from you.

YS: We’ll see. I’m trying to work on following my instincts. I’m a work in progress.

JP: Well, you’re not the only one. I hope that things work out for you.

YS: Thanks, man. And thank you for all of the advice. It was a little snarky at times, but your words usually got through to me. Usually too late, but still. I can learn from everything.

JP: Of course. Is there anything that you’d like to say? Some advice from you maybe?

YS: _Look at the stars, Look how they shine for you_ [lyrics from ‘Yellow’ by Coldplay] _–_ no, I’m kidding! I would say that life is all about compromise. A yellow sweater isn’t the end of the world. It’s close! But it won’t kill you. And glue guns are nobody’s friend. Nor is superglue. Users beware. Also, ‘More Than Words’ should be everybody’s theme song.

With that, Yellow Sweater had to leave. He was apparently scheduled to ‘see a man about a bear’. I hope he didn’t mean it literally. And I hope that it wasn’t yellow. Either way, I will keep you updated when he next gets in touch. As always, please feel free to email me at [jaredpadalecki@oakbanktimes.com](mailto:jaredpadalecki@oakbanktimes.com) with your questions and I will do my best to answer. Next week, I will be doing a piece on how to choose the best Christmas gifts.

Until then, thank you for reading!

**JP**

 


End file.
